VT V8 5.0 Auto into Manual Landcruiser

Holden/Delco Tuning. ALDL, OBD 1.5. Circa 1989 to 2004.
feistl
Posts: 26
Joined: Tue Jul 28, 2015 8:03 am

VT V8 5.0 Auto into Manual Landcruiser

Post by feistl »

Hey guys,

Long time reader, first time poster...

(And yes, i have been searching for answers first but havnt what i am after yet).

So in summary i am doing a couple of FJ40 Landcruiser projects and will be using a Holden V8 donor engine.
One of the landcruisers will be using a VT 304 and the other will be using a HSV 195kw 304.

Now both donor engines are complete including an Auto loom and ECU. So here are my questions...
  • Can a physical auto ECU be flashed/hacked/reprogrammed to work without the auto transmission? If so, is there any disadvantages in performance or reliability?
  • Does anyone have a good wiring diagram for the differences between the Auto and Manual loom? (EG pin 1 = wire to connector A) I am planning on stripping the loom back to bare connectors and building the new loom from scratch while also incorporating the LPG Vapor injection wiring.
  • Does anyone know the PPR type speed sensor required to work with these ECUs? I need to find one that bolts into a 60 series H55F 5 speed landcruiser gearbox and works with the VT ECU.
  • I will be using the HSV headers on the VT HSV engine, but the exhaust may not flow as well as i am limited in how free flowing the exhaust can be. I will also be using a snorkle which will add some restriction to the intake, will either of these changes effect the tune?
  • Finally, should i stick with a standard holden MAF tune or is it better to go a MAFLESS MAP based tune?
I promise to post pictures of the conversion :)

Cheers, Errol
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Jayme
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Location: North Coast, NSW

Re: VT V8 5.0 Auto into Manual Landcruiser

Post by Jayme »

Can a physical auto ECU be flashed/hacked/reprogrammed to work without the auto transmission?
on a VT and up, the ECU's and wiring is the same. only the calibration is different, and the manual harness is missing the auto wires.

If so, is there any disadvantages in performance or reliability?
No

Does anyone have a good wiring diagram for the differences between the Auto and Manual loom? (EG pin 1 = wire to connector A) I am planning on stripping the loom back to bare connectors and building the new loom from scratch while also incorporating the LPG Vapor injection wiring.
for a VT v8, the wiring is the same.... only the wires going to the transmission are missing from the Manual Loom

Does anyone know the PPR type speed sensor required to work with these ECUs? I need to find one that bolts into a 60 series H55F 5 speed landcruiser gearbox and works with the VT ECU.
I cannot remember the PPR, but its a sine wave type sensor, and you can alter the PPR in the tune.

I will be using the HSV headers on the VT HSV engine, but the exhaust may not flow as well as i am limited in how free flowing the exhaust can be. I will also be using a snorkle which will add some restriction to the intake, will either of these changes effect the tune?
a MAF is fairly forgiving for this kind of thing. if you keep the MAF - it wont affect it much, as the tune is based on grams of air flowing through the MAF. if you were using a map sensor (eg: going mafless) then any changes to the airflow of the engine will need a retune.

Finally, should i stick with a standard holden MAF tune or is it better to go a MAFLESS MAP based tune?
this is a pretty subjective question... I personally prefer tuning MAP based, but you can get just as much horsepower out of a MAF based setup (and you get the above mentioned benefit of the tune being very forgiving to exhaust changes) at the end of the day, this is a question for your tuner.
feistl
Posts: 26
Joined: Tue Jul 28, 2015 8:03 am

Re: VT V8 5.0 Auto into Manual Landcruiser

Post by feistl »

Wow, that's a fantastic response. I truly appreciate it :thumbup:

So it should be a pretty easy conversion then, just a matter of flashing the ECU with the standard manual bin file as per this thread and removing VATS.

Ill then just make the changes to the wiring to remove the auto loom section.

Im happy to stick with a MAF, dont really want to spend a lot getting the thing retuned for no real advantage.

Once again thanks for your advice. I'm feeling better about the conversion now.

Cheers, Errol
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hsv08
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cars: (EX) VT SENATOR 355 STROKER
(EX) VT SS 304 MANUAL
NOW VX V6 HACK

Re: VT V8 5.0 Auto into Manual Landcruiser

Post by hsv08 »

feistl wrote:Wow, that's a fantastic response. I truly appreciate it :thumbup:

So it should be a pretty easy conversion then, just a matter of flashing the ECU with the standard manual bin file as per this thread and removing VATS.
Just so your aware, (it may just be the term you've used) the vt pcm is not "flashable" as they have an eprom. If you have an eprom from any maf based pcm then either an enhanced bin or a standard bin can be burnt to that eprom (given the eprom has already been erased under UV).
VU VX and VY V6 engines had "flashable" PCMs :)
Dylan
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Joined: Mon Aug 02, 2010 6:35 pm
cars: VR Commodore V8

Re: VT V8 5.0 Auto into Manual Landcruiser

Post by Dylan »

Sorry for thread jumping didnt want to get the other to clogged up with of topic posts.
The tune I done for my mate was quite simple but very effdctive and well priced.
Lots more torque and better fuel economy. I used the enhanced bin as a base.
Then adjust the timing and AFR's. Do you have your own burning equipment?
feistl
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Joined: Tue Jul 28, 2015 8:03 am

Re: VT V8 5.0 Auto into Manual Landcruiser

Post by feistl »

Thanks mate, yeah this thread is a good idea.

Yes, i plan to get the equipment to do the burning myself.

I did enquire to a few companies around melbourne but got scared off by the $1000-1400 for a basic dyno tune (I know tuning is expensive, i have had LS based motors tuned in the past) but i thought that was probably a bit high for a stock standard engine. As i am doing a rebuild, is there anything specific i should be doing while the motor is apart?

The plan was to strip the motors down, get the blocks inspected, honed and cleaned and new cam bearings installed. Then i was going to do the reassembly myself with new piston rings, main/rod bearings, new gaskets/seals, injectors cleaned/flow tested, new sensors/wiring and a good check over everything else.

Apparently the HSV 195kw had a number of internal changes which is also why i choose this motor...
hsv195_zpsll2xggoz.jpg
hsv195_zpsll2xggoz.jpg (328.73 KiB) Viewed 4367 times
cheers
Dylan
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cars: VR Commodore V8

Re: VT V8 5.0 Auto into Manual Landcruiser

Post by Dylan »

Sounds like a uninformed sales pitch. From best of my knowledge heads are identical as is the throttle body.
Unique extractors and camshaft and tune are the upgrades from my findings.

The upgrades to the heads and the sequential injection were part of the VT upgrade. The 179kw standard engine had the upgraded heads and sequential injection and roller cam.

The 220 stroker I'm not sure what else besides the crank it had.
feistl
Posts: 26
Joined: Tue Jul 28, 2015 8:03 am

Re: VT V8 5.0 Auto into Manual Landcruiser

Post by feistl »

When i pull the motor down ill be taking lots of pics. I might even pull down a normal VT 179kw engine and the same time for a direct comparison, but as im no longer using a normal VT its a lot of extra effort.

I did look at just taking a normal engine and getting a camshaft for it, but most places wanted $550+ for the cam so it was cheaper/easier to just find some HSV donor engines.

I should also mention that i plan on running these on injected LPG. (OMVL Dream XXI system). Is it worth getting the block shaved to bump up compression slightly then run premium fuel?
Dylan
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Joined: Mon Aug 02, 2010 6:35 pm
cars: VR Commodore V8

Re: VT V8 5.0 Auto into Manual Landcruiser

Post by Dylan »

Gas I know nothing about that stuff. Ever way you will need new tunes with vats off.
Does gas like more timing? Factory tune is a bit shy there. The HSV ones is a bit better than stock.
feistl
Posts: 26
Joined: Tue Jul 28, 2015 8:03 am

Re: VT V8 5.0 Auto into Manual Landcruiser

Post by feistl »

Hey guys,

Another question,

Do i need to use the factory BCM and PCM in the conversion, or can i just use the PCM?

Reading a few other threads it looks like i need the BCM to control thermofans, aircon and to access the PCM?

If so, how much of the original body loom do i need to wire up the BCM? Will there be any issues having a Level 3 BCM (From a VT Calais?)

Cheers
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